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Fantasy has always been a perfect avenue for imagination. Whether it’s an alternate twist on our real world or a realm defined by magic and heroic quests, nothing is impossible.
Thanks to that immersive draw, the genre also remains a lucrative one on the big screen and the small. Fantasy television, in particular, is currently enjoying a resurgence — but it’s always been a gold mine rife with impeccably satisfying tales.
In a world where witches, vampires, and daemons secretly live among humans, Diana Bishop (Teresa Palmer) is a tenured professor at Oxford University and a witch who pursues science and history instead of spells. When her repressed magic subconsciously summons a long-lost manuscript from Oxford’s Bodleian Library, Diana finds herself caught in the crosshairs of deadly opportunists who covet the ancient document. Further complications arise when neither Diana nor Matthew Clairmont (Matthew Goode), a millennia-old vampire, can deny the bond growing between them.
Bad Wolf and Sky Studios adapt historian-turned-fiction author Deborah Harkness‘ All Souls trilogy (now an ongoing quintet) with aplomb. A Discovery of Witches strikes every escapist note with pitch-perfect poise, and it’s often more mature than it gets credit for. Harkness applies a biological lens to her supernatural worldbuilding, and her scholarly heroine evolves from rejecting her potential to commanding her power. Add on magnificent historical costumes, hand-constructed sets, and a forbidden romance (complete with Matthew’s ravenous gazing), and we have a romantasy winner.
Ned (Lee Pace) has a unique talent beyond his superb baking skills: he can resurrect dead creatures with a single touch. Ned only uses his ability to assist local detective Emerson Cod’s (Chi McBride) investigations, but he can’t help but apply them to Chuck (Anna Friel), his murdered childhood sweetheart. The only problem? Ned’s gift comes at a price. Any subsequent skin-to-skin contact returns the revived corpses to their deceased states. As Ned and Chuck tentatively navigate a romance without physical touch, Chuck also adjusts to her second chance at life.
For two seasons, Pushing Daisies explores relationships outside of society’s conventional norms and ponders the fragility of life with gentle melancholy. The fact that its musings take the form of a whimsical, sentimental rom-com featuring episodic sleuthing, acrobatic banter, and vividly stylized production design that’s apropos for a Bryan Fuller show is icing on the proverbial cake. The ABC series’ storybook sweetness is as rich and memorable as the first bite of that legendary homemade pie your grandma made from memory and secret ingredients.
Before Disney’s seminal 1991 musical, CBS transferred the 18th-century French fairy tale into modern-day New York City. Criminals violently abduct and assault District Attorney Catherine Chandler (Linda Hamilton) after they mistake her for another woman. Vincent (Ron Perlman), a tender-hearted man whose countenance and build resemble a two-legged lion, rescues her from the brink of death and nurtures her back to health. Even though the two occupy incompatible worlds, their star-crossed yearning becomes irresistible.
Beauty and the Beast showrunner Ron Koslow nestles a time-honored romantic dynamic inside a procedural template. He retains the original novel’s crystal-clear metaphors about looking beyond superficial assumptions, although to Catherine’s credit, she needs little convincing. Her poetically soulful leading man mentors an underground community of outcasts who live in the shadows to both survive and subvert human bigotry. Season 3 takes a steep downturn, but the first two seasons are swoonworthy to a fault; Vincent and Catherine’s self-sacrificial compassion and mutual empathy secure their soulmate status to the point they develop a psychic connection.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power could’ve easily been a hollow attempt to mine nostalgia for one of filmmaking’s singular achievements. With the blessing of J. R. R. Tolkien‘s estate and showrunners J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay‘s palpable reverence for the material, The Rings of Power‘s greatest heights rival Peter Jackson‘s The Lord of the Rings movies. Lore diversions aside, Payne and McKay fundamentally understand Tolkien’s message about human failings and bittersweet hope, and they strive to do justice to his 89-year legacy.
Like their character-driven story choices, the duo wields Prime Video’s enormous budget with exacting intention. Cinematic visuals and exquisitely detailed costumes furnish Middle-earth with the immersive, ethereal ambience it deserves. A tapestry of remarkable actors erases any lingering doubts, whether it’s the ferocious rage of Morfydd Clark‘s Galadriel, Charles Edwards‘ effortless gravitas as the tormented Celebrimbor, or Charlie Vickers‘ slithery, malicious Sauron. Every indication points toward The Rings of Power refining its minor imperfections and flourishing into a modern masterpiece.
After 12 years and eight captivating seasons, the curtain has closed on the television version of author Diana Gabaldon‘s time-traveling World War II nurse Claire Fraser (Caitríona Balfe) and her 18th-century Scottish husband, Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan). Saying goodbye is bittersweet whether audiences watched from Outlander‘s auspicious beginning or dived in because of the saga’s perpetual fanfare. And from their prickly first meeting to their closing breaths as they lay upon that stone, Claire and Jamie persisted as they always have: two survivors brought together by fate who defy history’s every attempt to separate them.
Despite being surrounded by rampant violence and misery, the Frasers’ cosmic connection elevates Outlander into its own brand of comfort show. Starz’s sheer production value, paired with the early seasons’ assured vision as a romance for the ages, seduces those already inclined to enjoy the show’s prestige soap opera style. Meanwhile, Outlander‘s period drama, grit, and political intrigue win over more dubious viewers. A love story first, foremost, and always, Season 8’s satisfying ending means fans can rewatch again and again with contentment.
Adolescent Wirt (Elijah Wood) and his precocious younger brother Greg (Collin Dean) wander through the Unknown, an off-kilter world filled with warm-toned woodland foliage, eccentric inhabitants, and magic both splendor and sinister. Unsure how or why they arrived, they’re searching for the path home. Beatrice the talking bluebird (Melanie Lynskey) and the enigmatic Woodsman (Christopher Lloyd) take pity on the brothers by helping them evade the Beast (Samuel Ramey), a demonic entity that feeds upon despair.
A mythic feeling permeates Patrick McHale‘s Emmy-winning miniseries. Over the Garden Wall layers New England iconography, absurdist satire, mythological references, and contemporary jokes over its cozy coming-of-age adventure-meets-macabre eldritch horror environment. The character designs and autumnal color schemes simultaneously evoke older Saturday morning cartoons and the illustrative fine art bound inside elaborate fairy tale collections. Nothing less than a tonal, atmospheric, and narrative masterclass, there’s still no genuine equivalent to Over the Garden Wall when it comes to modern classics, animated or otherwise.
Based on one of the most acclaimed manga phenomenons to date, this vehemently faithful adaptation of Hiromu Arakawa‘s Fullmetal Alchemist is a towering feat on its own merit. In Amestris, alchemy has been integrated into daily life for the citizens capable of channeling the method’s potent effects. Brothers and state-sanctioned alchemists Edward (Romi Park) and Alphonse Elric (Rie Kugimiya) seek out the fabled philosopher’s stone, hoping to reunite Alphonse’s soul with his human body. The siblings must also survive their country’s dangerous trappings and an array of deadly enemies.
Arakawa models her steampunk-adjacent universe after Europe’s Industrial Revolution, from the mechanical industries to the sociopolitical hierarchy. Yet neither the Fullmetal Alchemist manga nor Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood would soar as high if they didn’t root themselves in the heroes, antiheroes, and villains’ complex psychological range. Arakawa deftly and scathingly weighs the disastrous consequences of arrogance or desperation, a tyrannical militarized government, genocide, and revenge vendettas against guilt, atonement, and the clarity provided by communal love. Warmth and idiosyncratic comedy offset Brotherhood‘s devastating weight; together, they guarantee a hall-of-fame fantasy anime.
A sublime plot twist is literally just the beginning for The Good Place. Fearless and self-effacing, Michael Schur‘s sitcom always lives up to its premise’s parameters, no matter how many times Michael (Ted Danson), the demon architect with a heart of gold, resets his hellish experiment for his four human test subjects. Schur’s razor-sharp wit and consistent empathy turn philosophical theories into ethical dilemmas anyone can digest, as well as essential debates for every person’s growth.
Ultimately, The Good Place is about choosing compassion and personal accountability precisely because meaningful, lasting improvement requires us to embrace uncertainty and routine failure. Pushing against the systemic cruelties designed to deplete our spirits isn’t enough if we don’t contribute resistance through painstaking, individual hard work. The answer is obvious, not glamorous. Yet the life-affirming sincerity with which The Good Place handles flawed people floundering their way toward existential crisis and self-actualization elevates the series into cathartic resonance.
Kim Shin (Gong Yoo), a military warrior from Korea’s Goryeo Dynasty, returns home after winning another battle in his king’s name, only for his ruler to slaughter his entire household. Before his spirit can reach the afterlife, God sentences Kim to immortality as punishment for his violence. Only his prophesied bride can end his eternal existence. Now a dokkaebi (goblin), Kim spends the next nine centuries in self-reflection, providing for humans, grieving their deaths, and longing for his own. Finally, the Goblin’s Bride arrives in the form of Ji Eun-tak (Kim Go-eun), a modern-day student whose survival defies death’s laws. And with her effusive influence brightening his life, for the first time in 900 years, Shin wants to live.
A record-breaking cultural sensation hailing from writer Kim Eun-sook (Netflix’s The Glory), Guardian: The Lonely and Great God might as well be considered a minor miracle. The entire behind-the-camera team employs the defining K-Drama tropes with enough technical efficiency that viewers are bound to feel spoiled by the engrossing grandeur. Sure, Guardian is melodramatic to the core, but that’s crucial to the K-Drama appeal. The committed performers pour everything into selling the gut-wrenching twists, the bittersweet dual romances, and the kooky odd-couple friendships. Weeping is a small price to pay for an experience this intimate and visceral.
Welcome to Piltover, where technological progress, magic, political tension, and familial strife intertwine. This luxurious utopia belongs solely to the aristocratic elite. Their entitled comfort and unchecked experiments occur at the expense of their undercity’s well-being; relentless oppression, socioeconomic inequality, and opportunistic criminals have all but ruined Zaun. When Zaun’s burgeoning uprising gains strength, Vi (Hailee Steinfeld) and Jinx (Ella Purnell), two orphaned sisters separated by tragedy, stand on opposing sides.
Few predicted a revelatory artistic landmark would emerge from a League of Legends prequel series. Arcane stands as a one-in-a-million triumph on almost every level. French studio Fortiche’s transcendent animation is painterly and textured, flowing with musicality and jaw-dropping experimentation. It’s an efficient storytelling machine, as propulsive or meditative as the character-first pathos requires. Crushing abandonment, resentment, ambition, a warped sense of justice, and lost innocence drive said ensemble’s choices, backed by a monumental voice cast well-equipped for tragedy. The sisters fight to draw blood, and Arcane does the same.
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The “19 Kids and Counting” alum was arrested on child molestation charges in March.
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The proceeds from the payout will go to charity.
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Classics are classics for a reason, and Charlize Theron wore a shoe that’ll never go out of style. We’re taking a page from her book and grabbing a pair of white sneakers to work with all of our summer outfits. From feminine dresses to relaxed cargo pants, these $20 sneakers will pay for themselves in just a few weeks.
On the day her film Apex was released on Netflix, Theron stepped out in New York City wearing all-white sneakers. Her low-key look was just the kind of effortless vibe that anyone can copy, and it starts with the Kufeiti Low-Top Lace-Up Tennis Shoes we found on Amazon. The affordable pick has that sleek, clean look that you’ll wear over and over again.
Get the Dlooda Tennis Skort for $20 (originally $25) at Amazon! Please note, prices are accurate as of the publishing date but are subject to change.
Available in sizes 5.5 to 12, these Kufeiti sneakers are all white, except for a light gray detail by the heel. So, you won’t have to worry about them not matching with whatever look you have in mind. The faux-leather material looks more expensive than it is, and the slip-resistant soles keep you confident on your feet. They’re comfortable, too, boasting padded memory foam insoles and plush collars.
Theron paired her white sneakers with white pants, a denim zip-up jacket, black sunglasses and a black hat. It’s the off-duty ensemble that’s equal parts cool and comfortable. However, the white sneakers work way beyond this vibe and pair with floral sundresses, casual shorts and tees and just about any summer look you throw their way.
Amazon shoppers agree that these sneakers meet expectations for top-notch comfort and quality, especially when you consider the price tag. “I just got back from Europe and was SO impressed with the quality of these shoes. I forgot to wear the shoes beforehand to loosen them up and was worried, but I never got any blisters, and my feet never hurt after walking 10+ miles a day. Such a great deal!” a verified buyer wrote.
“I bought these to take on a New York City trip, because they would match most of my attire. We did tons of walking, and my feet did not blister or hurt. They are very comparable to Dr. Scholl’s but at a much cheaper price. I would buy these again!” one happy reviewer said.
A pair of white sneakers is a hero shoe, especially during the summer, as it is super versatile and made for comfort — so much so that even Theron is on board!
Get the Dlooda Tennis Skort for $20 (originally $25) at Amazon! Please note, prices are accurate as of the publishing date but are subject to change.
Looking for something else? Explore more white sneakers here and don’t forget to check out all of Amazon’s Daily Deals for more great finds!
Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for the Widow’s Bay Season 1 finale.
Horror was a big part of Katie Dippold’s childhood, spending summer nights in New Jersey in the ‘80s watching movies with her family. And then, she wrote the Widow’s Bay script as a spec for an episode of NBC’s Parks and Recreation, where she worked as a writer and co-producer. But that joke-focused version that felt more like a parody evolved over the years, eventually becoming a story full of quirky characters set in a quaint island town 40 miles off the coast of New England that is now a breakout hit for Apple TV.
In a town that feels like a cross between Amity Island from Jaws and Cabot Cove from Murder, She Wrote, Mayor Tom Loftis (Matthew Rhys) tried to boost tourism as strange events started to unfold, unleashing a centuries-old curse. Dealing with a sea hag wreaking havoc and a Boogeyman bent on destruction brought Tom together with Wyck (Stephen Root) and Patricia (Kate O’Flynn), each outcasts in their own way, as they worked together to get answers about how to break that curse before anyone else gets hurt. Instead, Tom learned a horrible truth that put his son (Kingston Rumi Southwick) directly in the path of danger in a way that they won’t be able to ignore in Season 2.
Creator/showrunner Dippold sat down with me for a conversation that dug into the evolution of the hit horror comedy series that has already gotten the greenlight for a second season and teased what’s next for this town and its residents. She also discussed the challenge of working with such a tricky tone, the fun of playing with horror tropes, what she loves about the trio of Tom, Wyck, and Patricia, how the finale reveal could play into Season 2, how far ahead she’s thought about the story, and whether this curse is fated.
COLLIDER: It’s wild that you wrote the pilot for this so long ago that you submitted it to Parks and Rec to get hired for that show. How close is the pilot that we see now to the script that you wrote back then?
KATIE DIPPOLD: It’s very different, but the heart of it is the same. The comedic voice was there, but it was very different. It was very joke-focused. I think that version would have felt more like a parody. I don’t think I, myself, would have watched it, to be honest. I want the horror and the tension and the stakes to all be taken very seriously. I want it to feel like a real place. Over the many, many years, that’s the thing I kept working on. This was my novel. When a writer has their little side project, this was that. I just kept coming back to it. The big difference is that it feels more like a real place and there’s actually more tension.
What is it about the horror genre that you love, and what do you think comedy brings out in horror?
DIPPOLD: Horror was a big part of my childhood. I don’t know why my family watched horror movies all the time when I was very young. I just associate a summer night in New Jersey in the ‘80s with watching Friday the 13th, or something. My parents are pranksters. I remember my dad walking down the hallway doing [the Friday the 13th theme]. When I was 16 and Blair Witch came out, I opened my door and he had left the sticks outside the door. I also feel like, as an anxious person, I’ve always found horror to be cathartic. If you’re an anxious person, you’re always waiting for the shoe to drop. And so, when you watch a horror movie, you get to experience that bad thing that you were waiting for. It happens, but then you’re safe.
I find that very relaxing. It’s a very tricky tonal balance with comedy and horror because it’s very easy to do it wrong. It is very important to us to have the comedy never be undercut the horror tension, and also make sure the characters always behave and act like this is happening and this is terrifying and not ever treating it lightly. That was one of the hardest parts. In Episode 7, when a coffin comes up, it’s so easy to write in a lighthearted way, but no, what’s happening is crazy. They have to have lines that let them react to this crazy thing that’s happening. I’ve never experienced that, so in the writers’ room, it was like, “What would they say right now?”
Matthew Rhys’ Horror Series ‘Widow’s Bay’ Is Apple TV’s Weirdest, Boldest Show Yet | Review
‘Widow’s Bay’ premieres April 29 on Apple TV.
You’ve worked in comedy and in sketch comedy, but you’ve also been blending comedy with the spooky for a bit, with Ghostbusters and Haunted Mansion. As a horror fan, did you have a board of things you wanted to work into this show somewhere, and is there still a lot left over that you couldn’t do this season?
DIPPOLD: There is a lot still to do, I have to say. For the first season, the goal was finding these horror tropes that we could add our Widow’s Bay spin to, and that were things you could buy happening to this island, A fog felt like a good entry point. It feels very New England island town. If you go too far right away, you’re going to be like, “I don’t buy any of this,” so you have to really slowly take the audience there. There were some things that came up in Season 1 that felt too big or too weird, but I think you could eventually get there. It’s tricky. You want to stay with the familiar so you can have fun with it, but you also have to make sure that you can add enough of your spin.
When it came to adding a sea hag or a Boogeyman, did you have other possibilities that you were choosing between, or were there very clear and specific choices?
DIPPOLD: Sometimes an idea for an episode will start from a place of horror, and sometimes it will start from more of a comedic place, even if it ends up being the opposite. For example, the inn was something where I was like, “Okay, Widow’s Bay has to have a spooky inn on this island that’s been around for centuries, and that has a Captain’s suite and all this lore within the building itself. It started from a place of really liking the idea of staying the night at the inn to prove it’s safe, and following Loftis around there. That started from more of a horror trope, but we then could use it because we were able to tie it to his emotional story, and it gave us a way to learn more about Loftis and see what he’s willing to do to bring tourists to the town and to just discover more about him.
And then, there were things like, for example, the sea hag episode. Going into this, I always wanted to do something with a hitchhiker. There’s a dark road on the island, he’s driving, and there’s some kind of hitchhiker. That started from a comedic place because I imagined that conversation with Patricia where she’s annoyed that he picked up a young woman and not an older woman. I always had that in my head. And then, in the [writers’] room, we started talking about a sea hag, and we brought all those things together. There are a lot of different ways in. We come at it from different angles.
As a horror fan, what’s it like to get to create the look of characters like that? How long did you think about what the Boogeyman should look like?
DIPPOLD: That’s so funny that you asked that. I would say it’s a challenging blast. Every episode taps into something, some kind of horror trope that we all know and love. But those tropes are usually their own movie, where they’ve had all year to think about what the Boogeyman’s mask looks like or what the book looks like in Episode 4. We were suddenly having to do all that really fast and doing so much of it. That was probably one of the more challenging things. You want the Boogeyman mask to be so special that it could have its own movie. That was always the creative challenge.

Was it also important not to have a big reveal and have the Boogeyman be someone’s neighbor?
DIPPOLD: Yeah. It was a big goal for me for the scary to always be scary, and to never undercut it, as much as possible. That doesn’t mean you can’t break the rules, but for the most part, that was a goal. Some things I just want to feel supernatural. With the Boogeyman, I just wanted to feel like there was something buried underneath a cement basement that was trying to get its way out, and it finally does. Can it be supernatural? Sometimes if the horror feels too human, it just doesn’t feel right for this show. If he took off his mask and it was someone you know, it would feel like a different kind of place.
I loved the choice of Patricia following the Boogeyman with her shotgun pointed at him and even going with him all the way to the furnace.
DIPPOLD: Oh, good. Episode 8 is interesting because it’s the Boogeyman and he’s scary, but we are having fun with it. Originally, we talked about that being a flashback episode where you see exactly what happened in that year when she was 16. But we had this great actress and this character we’ve come to know and love, and it was ultimately more fun to watch this 40-year-old woman running through the streets of her town, claiming a Boogeyman is chasing her, and still no one believing her. As ridiculous and absurd as the episode is, I really didn’t want him to do much that was funny. But Patricia holding the shotgun to him is something I would do. Anytime a horror movie gets to the end, it’s like, “No, shoot him a thousand times.” I would cut him into different pieces and ship them off to different parts of the world. I would take it so far. Patricia is a little bit funny doing something we would all want to see someone do, which is make sure he’s dead, please.
‘Widow’s Bay’ Just Added a Horrific New Layer to the Town’s Creepy Lore With 1 Shocking Scene
Kate O’Flynn also talks about Patricia’s unlikely bond with town misfits Tom and Wyck.
Patricia is such an odd character that I’m curious how much of that you saw and how much of that was what Kate O’Flynn brought to that role?
DIPPOLD: Patricia was probably the most fun to pitch for in the writers’ room. Everyone really got that character. Part of the inspiration is my own mom. She’s pretty neurotic and will just say the things she wants to say. I feel like that’s something Patricia would do. It comes from that. But I also feel like there’s just an element of Patricia that wants to be seen. She wants someone to say, “I see you and you’re great.” That’s all she really wants. She doesn’t want to be left out. Kate O’Flynn is such an incredible performer. It’s so rare that you just see someone and you’re like, “Oh, this is that person.”
I don’t see the actor. And she’s nothing like this character. She’s this very sweet, lovely British woman that’s a wonderful theater actress. Every part she plays is so different. She’s really incredible. I really think she’s doing something very special here. She brought all these other layers to it, even with her gait. The way she walks is so funny to me. It’s like a Muppet in a way, but it’s still very realistic. I think she’s incredible. (Casting director) Allison Jones sent us her tape, and it was just such a wonderful surprise. It wasn’t exactly how I pictured it at all, but I was like, “Well, that’s Patricia.”
What do you love about the trio of Tom, Patricia and Wyck?
DIPPOLD: The three of those actors are so good together. Among those three characters, a lot of different things are happening, Loftis and Patricia have a co-dependent thing. He can be rude to her and bicker with her and is impatient with her, and she can throw it back at him. And then, Loftis and Wyck have a rough dynamic and they’re at odds. But also, there’s possibly a slight father-son dynamic in the making. And then, Wyck seems to be very kind to Patricia, even if he says things that can infuriate her. He seems to really care for her and has a soft spot for her, and I don’t know that she’s ever had anyone look at her that way before. I feel like these actors bring all these different layers that are really fun to watch.
I remember when we were shooting outside the church, and I was inside the church. We needed a shot for Episode 4 when Loftis, Patricia, and Wyck are going in from the truck to the church. I was inside the church, going over the script with two of the writers, Neil [Casey] and Kelly [Galuska], and I forgot that they were coming in. We were writing, but there were no cameras. The three of them came in, in character, and I was like, “Am I in the show?” It was so weird. When the three of them would walk onto set together, it was exciting. They have something together. It’s very, very fun.
There’s an interesting balance in the finale between this intimate conversation between Tom and Ruth, and then all the other people in town trapped in a confined space together while the tension continues to rise. Did you think about it in that way and how that would compare?
DIPPOLD: There was a period of time when I wondered for a moment if the whole episode should just be Loftis talking to Ruth, and it’s just the two of them, the whole episode. But you’ve spent this whole season with all these other characters, and you want to see what they’re doing and also how their stories are resolving. But also, seeing them in the shelter and it feeling claustrophobic and feeling like it’s all boiling and things are about to blow just to put more pressure on Loftis. I wanted, as much as possible, for the audience to really be with Loftis and really understand. If you go back to the shelter and see the tension rising, you can remember that. Otherwise, it could be easy to be like, “Oh, you know what? Just forget it. Just leave. Just don’t do anything. Just talk to Ruth and go home.” You need that reminder, whether that’s five people about to really tear each other apart down there or if the shelter is not going to hold or what Evan is getting into down deeper in the basement. Those are all things to raise the stakes for Loftis.
How do you think Loftis feels about learning that it’s actually the son he was trying to protect that’s going to be the issue? Is that something you want to explore more?
DIPPOLD: We’ll definitely have to get into it. I think he feels not good. Not to get too heavy, but you have these dreams of what life should be and I almost feel like I can Disnify things. What’s the Disney version of life? And when you start to realize all the horrors that exist in the real world, it’s hard to accept. There’s a lot of that acceptance at the end of the show, so that’s a big thing that we’re exploring.
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Is it the next Martha’s Vineyard, or is it definitely cursed?
Dale found the video about the people needing to be sacrificed according to the number of bell tolls and flipped out, making everyone else flip out, but he doesn’t articulate what he’s seeing and how it makes him feel. With everything that comes out in the finale, are these residents just going to have to deal with things on a different level moving forward? They can’t just ignore that, can they?
DIPPOLD: Right. I guess the only way I can say it is that I feel like Season 1 is almost a prequel to living on a haunted island. Season 1 is slowly starting to realize what’s happening. I think there’s much more fun to be had in Season 2. But I don’t want to say any more than that.
This show existed for a while before you actually shot it, and it evolved over that time. At what point did you know where you would leave things in the finale? What made you decide to end it with Tom having all this information, but no one else having that information yet?
DIPPOLD: Going into the season, I knew I wanted to do something with the bloodline. I knew that I wanted Loftis to be presented with this horrible dilemma, something that really asks what kind of person and leader he is and really makes it not easy and makes it as complicated as possible. We had this debate in the writers’ room about what you would do, and everyone had different answers. When Wyck says, in Episode 9, “Just take a shotgun and shoot her in the back of the head,” I actually don’t know that he’s wrong. I do think that’s the kind thing to do. Loftis does something that I think I would do, deciding to just peacefully poison her to sleep, which seems like the easier way. But because it’s easier for Loftis, he pays the price for that. That leads to him finding out something that will change his life and trajectory forever.
I knew that he was going to have this dilemma, and I knew what would be revealed. Exactly how it was going to play out, I wasn’t sure. We talked about different options in the writers’ room. One of the writers pitched the Bechir move, which I thought was very interesting. I liked how it gave Kevin Carroll much more to do. It makes it interesting, going forward, that there is a man who’s a police detective that is willing to do anything to get off the island, and God help Loftis if he ever finds out about his son. The original ending, I wrote the draft of while we were in production. I can’t remember where it ended off, but Apple encouraged me to give more, and I did. I just can’t remember what exactly came out of that, but it was a whole process of figuring out exactly how to end it.
How far have you planned things out with this series, or at least thought about the story you’re telling? Do you have a good sense of Season 2 and Season 3?
DIPPOLD: I have a good sense of Season 2, in the sense of how I want it to feel, the kinds of stuff we can do, and more of the lore to show. I’ve always had an idea for how I think Loftis’ story should end. Whether that’s what we end up doing or not, I’m not sure, but there’s something I’ve always had in mind.
Do you see it being more full-on horror moving forward?
DIPPOLD: I think it’s always going to serve both.
Do you want to do more flashbacks?
DIPPOLD: Yes. I think it’d be fun to do more flashbacks. What I think could be very fun about this show and that I always had in mind was, if you build this world and people like being in this world, then aside from this story, there could be future miniseries. What happened at the inn over that New Year’s night could be a standalone six-episode season. I think there is all sorts of stuff you can do, as long as this world is established. I think there’s a lot of fun to be had.
You’re also playing with things that are fated, like the bells in town ringing with the number of people that need to be sacrificed. Is that predetermined and fated? Can anything be changed? Is that something you also want to delve deeper into?
DIPPOLD: Yes. These are the complications that would come up in Season 2.
Widow’s Bay is available to stream on Apple TV.
April 28, 2026
Apple TV
Katie Dippold
Sam Donovan, Andrew DeYoung, Hiro Murai, Ti West
Alberto Roldán, Neil Casey, Kelly Galuska, Colton Dunn, Dave Harris, Katie Dippold, Mackenzie Dohr
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One of TV’s greatest police procedurals starred Dennis Franz, Jimmy Smits, and David Caruso.
Armie Hammer is reflecting on his downfall five years after allegations and leaked messages sparked major controversy that derailed his entertainment career. The actor, once considered one of Hollywood’s rising stars, found himself at the center of intense public scrutiny, which led to a dramatic shift in his public image.

Armie Hammer’s career was on the rise before multiple women came forward accusing him of sexual and psychological abuse. The actor, who comes from a prominent and wealthy family, gained widespread recognition after playing the role of the Winklevoss twins on “The Social Network.” He also starred in “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” and “Call Me by Your Name.”
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the 39-year-old looked back on the controversy and said he was responsible for creating his own problems. However, he also noted that he wasn’t guilty of the allegations against him.
“This didn’t happen to me by a fluke accident. I didn’t do what people are saying I did. But I brought very dangerous and unsafe people into my life,” Hammer explained.
Five years after his downfall, Hammer compares himself to Sisyphus, a figure from Greek mythology condemned to roll a boulder up a hill as a form of punishment. “Except my boulder is covered in Vaseline,” Hammer said.

In early 2021, messages allegedly from Hammer circulated online describing details of cannibalistic urges and violent BDSM practices. A few of the actor’s ex-partners subsequently came forward, claiming they were psychologically and emotionally abused, and coerced into sex acts.
While Hammer admitted to behaving inappropriately with the women, he denied the claims of sexual violence and cannibalism. The LAPD and the District Attorney’s Office launched an investigation into the matter. Two years later, prosecutors announced they would not be pursuing a case against Hammer due to “insufficient evidence.”
When asked whether he could “undo” what happened, the actor said no. Hammer recalls his emotional and mental state at that time and said, “Healthy people don’t act the way I was acting.”
“I would have loved if I could have had an opportunity to do it in a little bit more of a gentle way. But at the end of the day — you get what you get,” Hammer said.

At one point, Hammer had a conversation with “an old Jamaican guy” and told him how disappointed he was that some friends in entertainment sent him messages but wouldn’t publicly defend him. The man then asked what kind of friend he was.
The man presented a scenario: If Hammer’s house were burning, would he want his friends to run into the burning house and get burned? The actor said, “No.” “So if you were really a good friend, what would you want your friends to do?” the man asked.
Hammer realized what the man was trying to say and answered that he wanted his friends to “stay as far away” from the burning house. “I think that was a spiritual moment,” he said.
In 2025, director Tarsem Singh, who worked with Hammer in the 2023 movie “Mirror, Mirror,” spoke about the actor and said, “I love Armie Hammer. I hope all this crap goes away on what adults do in their own spare time, and if everybody’s a consensual adult, I’m OK.”

In the years following his cancellation, several reports came out about Hammer’s finances, including an updated credit card debt amounting to hundreds of thousands. As previously reported by The Blast in 2024, the actor opened up on social media and said he was selling his truck, admitting that he could no longer afford gas.
The actor is the great-grandson of Armand Hammer, who built the oil empire Occidental Petroleum. Armand died in 1990, and Hammer’s father, Michael, inherited the majority of his fortune and business.
Michael died in 2022 after battling cancer. Hammer cleared the notion that he received an inheritance, saying that things were “complicated.” “You have to be a tax attorney to fully understand it. But the end result was not I’m set for the rest of my life, or even for the next couple of years. It hasn’t been that,” he shared.
Following the allegations, talent agency WME dropped Hammer as a client. His publicist also stopped representing him, and he was dropped from a few TV and movie projects.
In 2024, the actor received an email from German filmmaker Uwe Boll, who wanted to hire him to star in the movie “Citizen Vigilante,” which will be released on June 19. “I’m pretty sure I cried,” Hammer recalled, adding that before that, he would have done anything to get work again, even a “cat food commercial.”
Hammer has since worked on other indie projects, including “Frontier Crucible” and “Night Driver.”
Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster‘s romance has reportedly hit a “major roadblock” partly due to the Marvel star’s costly divorce from his ex-wife, Deborra-Lee Furness.
According to a new report, the lovebirds have been struggling to find “quality time together,” which has been linked to Jackman’s workaholic nature.
Now, insiders claim Sutton Foster is starting to “understand” how lonely Deborra-Lee Furness must have felt during her marriage to Hugh Jackman.

Jackman and Foster’s blossoming romance is facing new challenges, with sources close to the couple telling Woman’s Day that the actor’s work ethic has put a strain on their relationship.
Jackman’s workaholic ways are said to have gone into overdrive due to his costly split from Furness, which led him to throw himself back into work in an effort to recover financial losses.
Foster, a Broadway star herself, was reportedly in support of her and Jackman focusing on work and grinding extra hard for a while before taking a short break from their careers in order to prioritize their romance and marriage plans. However, his busy schedule is said to have become “interminable,” making Foster feel isolated.
The couple’s inner circle fears their new situation is doing “more harm than good,” as they have started drifting apart and aren’t actively building a life together.

Jackman and Foster recently put up a united front at the premiere of his new movie, “The Death of Robin Hood.” But the actor noticeably attended the after-party for the event solo, which raised eyebrows about the state of his relationship with Foster.
A source shared with the publication that the couple might now be headed for a rough patch due to Jackman’s tight work schedule with a series of projects lined up.
“Hugh’s a workaholic, and she’s starting to understand how lonely Deb must have felt at times,” the source noted. “Sutton’s finding it hard to be by Hugh’s side at so many events, and he invites her to every single one.”
They continued, “It’s not that she’s shy, but she’s busy with her own career and still has a young daughter to raise. Sadly, the biggest casualty of all is Hugh and Sutton finding quality time together – they’re like passing ships sometimes.”

According to Woman’s Day, Jackman’s move to focus on work in hopes of recovering from his “rather expensive divorce” has left Foster feeling like a “single mum,” which has become a cause for concern for her friends.
“It’s worth pointing out that not that long ago, Sutton had an absolutely devoted husband at her beck and call,” the insider told the publication. “Now she feels like a single mum, and her friends are worried how long she can last without that level of support.”
The source added that Jackman can’t “back down” because his finances and reputation are on the line. However, they noted that if he loses his relationship with Foster because of his incessant work ethic, “he won’t be a happy A-list billionaire.”

Away from his romance struggles with Sutton Foster, an insider recently shared with Closer Online that Jackman is worried about his ex-wife, Furness, writing an explosive memoir about their failed marriage.
The Australian actress has reportedly been left unhappy since her divorce from Jackman, which was seemingly worsened by his constant loved-up red carpet appearances with Foster, especially their recent Met Gala outing.
The source said, “She spent years helping Hugh build this image of being the ultimate devoted husband and all-around good guy, only to now watch herself totally erased from the picture while he parades around with Sutton.”
“It might not be so hard to take if they weren’t rubbing their romance in her face while she’s still picking up the pieces after the divorce,” they added.

According to the media outlet, the source shared that while Furness is not a “vengeful person,” Jackman and Foster’s actions have “pushed her buttons,” especially since “she never got the chance to have any closure.”
They noted that to bring in the big bucks for a memoir, Furness would have to reveal major secrets about her marriage to Jackman, which would be “an absolute nightmare for” the actor.
“He’s cultivated this good guy image for so many decades now, which is already in tatters thanks to the way he’s handled this divorce,” the source said. “There’s no telling how far he could fall if Deb totally exposes everything.”
Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for the Widow’s Bay Season 1 finale.
Summary
As the secrets unraveled in Apple TV’s Widow’s Bay, a quaint island town 40 miles off the coast of New England where a sea hag and a Boogeyman roam free and a sacrifice must be made, the unlikely trio of Mayor Tom Loftis (Matthew Rhys), Wyck (Stephen Root), and Patricia (Kate O’Flynn) teamed up to stop the malevolence that was permeating. But to save the many means that the elderly Ruth (K Callan) must be sacrificed, leaving Tom as the one to ensure the deed is done. Only, Tom quickly realized that he didn’t have all the details about the town descendants, that ending Ruth would not end the curse, and that the truth was far worse than he ever could have imagined.
During this interview with Collider, co-stars Rhys, Root and O’Flynn discussed Tom’s relationship with the Widow’s Bay sea hag, the different colors of Patricia, Wyck’s desire to protect the town, the unifying moment that brought this trio together, how Rhys came to drop his co-star during a scene in the finale, the shocking reveals at the end of the season, and how that might play into Season 2.
COLLIDER: Matthew, you have quite the relationship with a sea hag in this series. What was it like to work with her, especially in the moments when she’s so up close with you?
MATTHEW RHYS: I’m refraining from saying the wrong thing. There were two sea hags. There was a stunt hag and a sea hag. I would work in different ways with different hags. It was creepy. The moment I did the car-driving on that road, I actually found it quite scary. There were moments with the headlights where I’d go, “Oh, my God, this is so sinister.” And then, there were other moments when she was being thrown that you find yourself laughing out loud when you’re not supposed to. That is beautifully Widow’s Bay.
I loved that you could tell there was a real person there. That must have made it so much easier to react to.
RHYS: It did. It’s nice to be reacting to not be reacting to CGI as someone is shouting, and the dinosaur is running towards you. It’s always nice to react to a real human.
Kate, we really got to know Patricia in episode four. What did that episode tell you about her? How did what happened in that episode inform who she was for you?
KATE O’FLYNN: Initially, you meet her, and you’re like, “What’s her deal?” She manages to leave every conversation mortally wounded, even if the conversation is about the weather. You think, “Why is she stuck in that victim [mentality] of, ‘No one sees me’?” And then, you get that in episode four and understand the pain of what she’s been through. And also, you get to see the ecstasy. She has the best night of her life in episode four. It’s great to see that side of her as well, just to fill in all the different colors of Patricia.
Matthew Rhys’ Horror Series ‘Widow’s Bay’ Is Apple TV’s Weirdest, Boldest Show Yet | Review
‘Widow’s Bay’ premieres April 29 on Apple TV.
Patricia is described as an introvert who hates being invisible, so she demands attention in her own way, which really seems to summarize her. What do you think she really wants from this town and from the people in it?
O’FLYNN: I think on the surface she wants to be seen to be really helpful, like a really good person. That’s what she wants at the start. Underneath that, she wants friends, and she wants to find her community and to genuinely feel of service. She gets past how she’s seen and finds her tribe. That’s what she’s looking for.
STEPHEN ROOT: For all these characters, they’re looking for universal things. They’re looking for love. They’re looking for forgiveness. I think it’s really relatable.
Stephen, Wyck is described as an adversary for Tom, but that doesn’t really seem accurate to me. It seems like there’s a lot going on with him.
ROOT: There is.
He seems like someone who has seen too much and knows too much, and he’s frustrated because no one will listen to him.
RHYS: That’s Stephen Root.
ROOT: And also, he is the town inebriated drunk, so he has to work through that. Ultimately, he’s trying to protect the town, and he feels like he has the chutzpah to be able to do it and Tom does not. He wants to make it clear that these things are actually happening, and he’s researched it from day one. He’s got stuff from hundreds of years ago, and he’s very, very frustrated that he can’t get that through. But eventually, they find a way to work together to maybe combat the island itself, which is an entity.
In episode seven, there’s a funny moment when Patricia and Wyck have to inform Tom that a guy they thought was a buried corpse is actually alive, and they need Tom to have a conversation with him. Matthew, do you feel like that is a moment when Tom really just questions his life choices?
RHYS: No, because there’s too much going on in the moment. That was such a unifying moment for us three. It’s when they align properly for the first time, and they all believe what they’ve been dreading or what has been talked about or what they’ve been ignoring. I thought it was a really seminal moment for the three of them. But there’s so much to be done that there’s no dwelling on that moment, which is incredible.
ROOT: There’s a dead guy here. We’ve got to do something about it. You’ve got to talk to him.
RHYS: That was such a joy to play.
O’FLYNN: That was the hardest scene to get through. It was impossible to not laugh.
In episode eight, Patricia is running away from this imposing figure of a Boogeyman that’s after her, ends up interrupting a book club, and tases a mean girl. What was all of that like to do? Did it feel empowering for Patricia?
O’FLYNN: Totally. Patricia is a badass. She’s brave. I actually think all the locals are because they’ve been dealing with this island. It’s in their blood. There is a toughness to them. That’s the arc of Patricia. Suddenly, she’s finding her power, and she’s got the gun, and she’s like, “Watch out!”
‘Widow’s Bay’ Just Added a Horrific New Layer to the Town’s Creepy Lore With 1 Shocking Scene
Kate O’Flynn also talks about Patricia’s unlikely bond with town misfits Tom and Wyck.
Matthew, in the finale, Tom has this long conversation with Ruth while they’re sitting together and he’s learning about her history. He also learns that he didn’t have the full extent of the information and that she’s not exactly the last descendent. How do you think he feels about learning that it’s actually his son, who he’s been trying to protect this whole time? What goes through your head in a moment like that?
RHYS: I just remember making an inaudible sound when I read it. I remember taking the biggest intake of breath when I read that moment. I went, “Oh, my God, it’s genius!” Talk about a cliffhanger for a second season. It’s the amalgamation of all that’s gone before. I just thought it was an incredible piece of scriptwriting. And then, I dropped K Callan. There was a moment in the script that said, “Tom lifts her into his arms.” The stunt coordinator, Paul Marini, said, “Okay, we’ll cut before you lift. Just don’t lift her.” I was like, “She’s 89. Of course, I can lift her.” In that moment, I went, “I’m going to lift her.” So, I lifted her, and then I dropped her. (Showrunner) Katie Dippold took a screengrab of that moment and put it on a mug, and I was explaining it to my son the other day. He was like, “What is that a picture of? You’re falling with an old woman.” I was like, “Let me tell you, son. There’s a place called Widow’s Bay, 40 nautical miles off the coast of New England.”
Now you’re as cursed as Tom is.
RHYS: Yes, in many ways.
Beyond where Tom goes from here, where does this trio of Tom, Wyck, and Patricia go from here? What are you most curious about?
ROOT: The fact that it’s all dropped on Tom.
O’FLYNN: Yeah, we don’t know.
RHYS: Now, figure that out. It’s not figured out. There’s a lot of work to do. It’s time to grab a Scooby snack and get back out there.
O’FLYNN: We don’t know if he’s going to tell them. We have no idea.
RYHS: It’s a beautifully human, emotional journey. It’s not all about fighting the supernatural. It’s a very, very relatable thing.
O’FLYNN: Kevn Carroll, as Bechir, is left with a huge dilemma at the end. There’s real jeopardy with that and real fear.
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Widow’s Bay is available to stream on Apple TV.
April 28, 2026
Apple TV
Katie Dippold
Sam Donovan, Andrew DeYoung, Hiro Murai, Ti West
Alberto Roldán, Neil Casey, Kelly Galuska, Colton Dunn, Dave Harris, Katie Dippold, Mackenzie Dohr
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(jpeg)/NUP_208742_00170_RF-d6532847e1884f398f050a51efb5f593.jpg)
Peacock’s upcoming adaptation of Elin Hilderbrand’s best-selling novel stars Jennifer Garner, D’Arcy Carden, Regina Hall, Chloë Sevigny, and Gemma Chan.
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